A poem is a primary source:
Primary sources are original materials. They are from the time period involved and have not been filtered through interpretation or evaluation. Primary sources are original materials on which other research is based. They are usually the first formal appearance of results in physical, print or electronic format. They present original thinking, report a discovery, or share new information.
From: University of Maryland, http://www.lib.umd.edu/guides/primary-sources.html
There are several databases where you can locate full text of poetic primary works.
**LitFinder**: Type your "keyword" into the search box.
Uncheck the "Content Type" boxes with the exception of "Primary Sources and Literary Works:" this will insure that your search results will be limited to this type of document. Scroll down in the "By Type of Work" drop-down list and highlight "Poem."
Your results list will be presented in terms of Relevance: the articles that match your search criteria the closest will be at the top of the list (notice the percent relevant notation for each article at the right). You can deliver the article in several ways: save to a file, email, print, or audio (download to an MP3 file or click the "Listen" button to get an immediate audio read-out).
Citation information is provided at the end of the article (remember to check the format of the citation provided by the database to be sure it conforms to the latest version of the MLA Style Guide:MLA Citation Guide NEW!eLibrary Curriculum Literature Module: From the initial database page, click on the "Special Collections: Literature" link and you will be brought to a special sub-database exclusively dedicated to literary information.
Select the tab for "Literary Works." You can designate where your search term will appear by typing it in one of the three search boxes: Words in Text, Words in Title, or Author Name (Typing your search term in the "Words in Title" search box will provide you with more "relevant" results than if you type the search term in the Words in Text box). In the "Search In" field, uncheck Novels and Short Stories and Plays, so that only Poems will be in your results list.
Citation information is provided at the end of the article: citations for the electronic source, as well as for the "Source Text" (book from which the information was extracted) are provided in unformatted form.
Literary Reference Center: Select the "Advanced Search" tab. Click on the "Uncheck All" tab, and then select only "Poems" so that your results are limited to this type of publication. Under "Limit Your Results" select "Full Text:" this will limit your results to results that provide the complete poem, or the full-text of the poem.
This database provides articles in both PDF form and HTML: if you select the PDF form you will not be provided with the citation information for the poem. If HTML form is available, select that tab and the article will be displayed with citation information. If only the PDF format is available, print the poem in the PDF view but also be sure to click on the Title Link, where you will be provided with the citation information for the poem. MLA Citation GuideGuide that provides examples of how to format your Works Cited list.
Citation Examples:
Poems in a Book:
If the poem is an essay in an edited collection or anthology of poems by different authors, the basic form for this sort of citation is as follows:
Lastname, First name. "Title of Essay." Title of Collection. Ed. Editor's Name(s). Place of Publication: Publisher, Year. Page range of entry. Medium of Publication. Example:
Burns, Robert. "Red, Red Rose." 100 Best-Loved Poems. Ed. Philip Smith. New York: Dover, 1995. 26. Print.
If the poem is part of the author's own collection (all of the works in the book have the same author), then there will be no editor to reference. Example:
Whitman, Walt. "I Sing the Body Electric." Selected Poems. New York: Dover, 1991. 12-19. Print.
Poems in a Database/Electronic Source: Grenier, Edouard. "Friendship." Casements: Being Fifty Poems by Fifty French Poets, 1820-1920. E. P. Dutton and Company, 1926: 50. LitFinder for Schools. Gale Group Databases. WEB. 23 Nov 2009. **Tips for Writing About Poetry**
Tuesdays With Morrie
A poem is a primary source:
Primary sources are original materials. They are from the time period involved and have not been filtered through interpretation or evaluation. Primary sources are original materials on which other research is based. They are usually the first formal appearance of results in physical, print or electronic format. They present original thinking, report a discovery, or share new information.
From: University of Maryland, http://www.lib.umd.edu/guides/primary-sources.html
There are several databases where you can locate full text of poetic primary works.
**LitFinder**: Type your "keyword" into the search box.
Uncheck the "Content Type" boxes with the exception of "Primary Sources and Literary Works:" this will insure that your search results will be limited to this type of document. Scroll down in the "By Type of Work" drop-down list and highlight "Poem."
Your results list will be presented in terms of Relevance: the articles that match your search criteria the closest will be at the top of the list (notice the percent relevant notation for each article at the right). You can deliver the article in several ways: save to a file, email, print, or audio (download to an MP3 file or click the "Listen" button to get an immediate audio read-out).
Citation information is provided at the end of the article (remember to check the format of the citation provided by the database to be sure it conforms to the latest version of the MLA Style Guide: MLA Citation Guide
NEW! eLibrary Curriculum Literature Module : From the initial database page, click on the "Special Collections: Literature" link and you will be brought to a special sub-database exclusively dedicated to literary information.
Select the tab for "Literary Works." You can designate where your search term will appear by typing it in one of the three search boxes: Words in Text, Words in Title, or Author Name (Typing your search term in the "Words in Title" search box will provide you with more "relevant" results than if you type the search term in the Words in Text box). In the "Search In" field, uncheck Novels and Short Stories and Plays, so that only Poems will be in your results list.
Citation information is provided at the end of the article: citations for the electronic source, as well as for the "Source Text" (book from which the information was extracted) are provided in unformatted form.
Literary Reference Center: Select the "Advanced Search" tab. Click on the "Uncheck All" tab, and then select only "Poems" so that your results are limited to this type of publication. Under "Limit Your Results" select "Full Text:" this will limit your results to results that provide the complete poem, or the full-text of the poem.
This database provides articles in both PDF form and HTML: if you select the PDF form you will not be provided with the citation information for the poem. If HTML form is available, select that tab and the article will be displayed with citation information. If only the PDF format is available, print the poem in the PDF view but also be sure to click on the Title Link, where you will be provided with the citation information for the poem.
MLA Citation Guide Guide that provides examples of how to format your Works Cited list.
Citation Examples:
Poems in a Book:
If the poem is an essay in an edited collection or anthology of poems by different authors, the basic form for this sort of citation is as follows:
Lastname, First name. "Title of Essay." Title of Collection. Ed. Editor's Name(s). Place of Publication: Publisher, Year. Page range of entry. Medium of Publication.
Example:
Burns, Robert. "Red, Red Rose." 100 Best-Loved Poems. Ed. Philip Smith. New York: Dover, 1995. 26. Print.
If the poem is part of the author's own collection (all of the works in the book have the same author), then there will be no editor to reference.
Example:
Whitman, Walt. "I Sing the Body Electric." Selected Poems. New York: Dover, 1991. 12-19. Print.
Poems in a Database/Electronic Source:
Grenier, Edouard. "Friendship." Casements: Being Fifty Poems by Fifty French Poets, 1820-1920. E. P. Dutton and Company, 1926: 50.
LitFinder for Schools. Gale Group Databases. WEB. 23 Nov 2009.
**Tips for Writing About Poetry**